Sky Pride

“Have we entered Hell?” Tian wasn’t sure who spoke for a moment, then realized it was him.

Shimmering gems of ice condensed over a lake nearly a mile in diameter, before sublimating from the extreme cold. The ice sheet was clear to the point of near-invisibility, brilliant under the sun. The whole of it looked as though it was on fire. It wasn’t the sun’s light reflecting on the surface. It was the burning stone tree at the center.

Rising from a stone island at the center of the lake was an enormous tree. The thick black trunk quickly split into many sections, reaching upwards like fingers that then divided again and again before spreading into thin, nobbly branches. There should have been a heavenly fragrance- the tree bore both blossoms and fruit, but there was only a smell of burning stone. The blossoms, five lobed flowers with sprays of golden pistils, were made of static flames, and the fruit, plump and round, made the air shimmer like water with their heat.

“A plum tree, I think. Some kind of overfed, petrified, hell-plum.” Lin murmured.

Su flicked a stone onto the ice. Rather than gliding, it came to a quick stop, and frosted over. They watched it for a few minutes longer. The rock began to flake, shedding layers and quickly looking corroded. In a quarter hour, it was a little heap of gravel. In twenty minutes, it was dust.

“Remind me how long it’s been since anyone harvested the ice here?” Liren asked.

“It’s an interesting question. The mountain never goes uninhabited, but there is not always a clear ruler. There were, I believe, three sects based on the mountain that were consolidated into the Ancient Crane Monastery when the Ancient Crane rested here. The history is unacceptably vague, and there is even less about the sects that existed on the mountain before them.” Su shook her head at the messiness of it all.

“Presumably someone entered the trial grounds between when the Eight Directions Palace fell and now.” Wang stroked his chin. “Though it is entirely possible that they just never got this far. Or if they did, they failed and died here.”

Tian pulled out one of his herbology manuals and quickly checked his memory. “Plums need freezing temperatures to properly grow. Perhaps stone plums need it to freeze even harder. Likewise, the only way I can think of for ice to gain layers is if it freezes, partially melts, freezes again, and so on. A heat source is needed. I am suddenly very curious about what exactly this forest is.”

That got a round of silent nods.

“Anyone have any good ideas?” Lin asked.

That got a round of silent shakes.

After another long pause, silence, Brother Wang scratched his chin and said “What about quarrying the ice away? We start from the closest edge and work our way inward. It would take a long time, but we aren’t in any particular rush and we will be harvesting valuable goods as we go. I’m sure that we could find a use for powerfully yin ice, even if it’s only to sell it.”

Liren nodded firmly. “Excellent idea. Here, use this pick axe and try it out.” She pushed the pick axe into his hand, and prodded him towards the lake.

“I really don’t think-” he started to say, but was quickly overruled.

“You can do it, Brother.” Lin encouraged.

“Yes. Bring back useful information, Husband.” Su also ‘encouraged.’

“Think of it as training before you are sent to the lead mines.” Tian also helped.

“I’m remembering this, you swine.” The big man grumbled and made his way to the edge of the lake.

“Cold. Very cold. Not unbearable, but even here on the shore, I think I would freeze in a few hours.”

“Good. It means you won’t sweat as much.” Liren added to the encouragement.

Brother Wang groaned, doubtless with gratitude for the unstinting support of his sect siblings, and brought the pick axe around in a sharp arc. There was a glassy clack followed by a metallic chime and then a considerably less melodious thud.

“Ah. Sorry, Sister Hong, I seem to have ruined your pickaxe.” The head had broken in three places, and the handle was shattered. “Ruined” was a fair description.

There was a few moments silence as they examined the destruction.

“I’ve been trying to come up with something about how this is the ancestral pick axe of the Hong Clan, and I’m struggling to say something sensible. Just assume I’ve effectively guilted you into handing over your purse.”

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Liren pulled out a stick from her storage ring. It didn’t freeze when it was over the ice, but it did freeze seconds after it touched the surface. The wood was practically evaporating in front of their eyes. A light tap against the ruined handle saw puffs of desiccated wood flying off in the light breeze.

“No problem. Here.” Brother Wang handed over a very thin purse of soiled and tattered silk.

“Two bent coppers and a fine collection of lint. Such sincerity.”

“I’m even throwing in the purse. You can’t say I don’t repay my debts.”

Tian started ignoring them, staring at the ice and the burning tree on the other side of it. These tests had largely been about character or understanding, not raw power. Even if the test was now broken, the same basic principle should apply. Was there something inherent to this that they were just missing? Tian could walk over the ice with Moon Crosses the Lake, but there was simply no way that was how the ancients intended this test to be passed.

“We are thinking about this incorrectly. Before we decide methods, we must confirm the goal. What, precisely, is this test supposed to be testing?” Su asked. Her voice was clipped, precise. Tian felt a sudden surge of gratitude for her.

“Eat the fruit, use the ice?” Lin suggested, then immediately frowned.

“I think Sister sees the problem. How?” Su’s lips compressed into what might, in the right light and from the right angle, be interpreted as a smile. “Even if the story about fire and water contending was common knowledge in the era these trials were created in, collecting ten layer ice and a heartsear fruit, then safely using them, could not possibly have been common knowledge.”

“Collect them and then have their new employers show them how to use them?” Tian suggested.

“That is possible, but again, how to collect them? Did they need to bring ice saws and fireproof equipment?” Su spread her hands. “Unlikely. So we are still missing the essential key to this test- its objective.”

Tian nodded, then shook his head. “I can’t think what it might be, other than simply being able to cross the ice and pluck the fruit. Maybe the fruit can melt the ice somehow? Or it could be a function of the trial ground. The pinecone with the fire and water seeds dropped for me as soon as I crossed the river. Perhaps by reaching the tree, the trial ground produces the goods for us.”

“Also possible, but again, how to cross the ice? Did everyone taking the test have a light body art? It seems unlikely.” Su shook her head.

There was an excellent round of staring and mutual incomprehension.

Tian put away his herbology manual and took out the field guide to the mountain. He reread the section on the Fire and Water Valley test ground. It was short enough. “‘The trial ground will open once the candidates have demonstrated a suitable level of understanding and character. Upon completion, the trial ground will provide them with a Heartsear fruit and Ten-Layer Ice. Immediately deliver the surviving applicants to the servant’s division. Do not speak to them more than is strictly necessary, as it creates an undue sense of familiarity in the servants.’ That’s it. That’s all the guide has to say on the subject.”

They digested that in silence, each lost in their thoughts as they watched the frozen lake dance with reflected fire.

Lin started to laugh. “I really must thank Third Uncle for his heartfelt advice. Regrettably, he is on the other side of the barrier, but he’s the kind to really enjoy a kingdom collapsing. But when I next see him, I will certainly tell him just how much I appreciated his thoughtful words.”

“Sister Lin?”

“I got all kinds of ‘useful tips’ on how to change my mentality after I left the Six Turns Cavern. Quite a lot of advice about the necessity of unquestioning obedience, and the need to have faith that those above us will lead us to where we need to be. A properly filial mindset. I think this is another example of that.”

She leaned forward, grinning nastily and emphasising her words with her finger.

“Think about the tests so far. Follow the path without deviating. If there is a river of fire before you, go where you are bidden and walk through it. If there is a gate before you, even if there are no walls, you go through the gate. Sometimes the masters may entrust you with a treasure. If you consume the treasure, you will die horribly. Use it as your masters will, and do not dare try and snatch benefits. Understand how the world should be ordered, accept suffering to fulfill your role, and in the end you shall have your true reward. Deviate even slightly from the will of the masters, and perish.”

Wang took her point, his own smile turning ugly. “There is no solution, or rather, there is no trick. We just need to walk over there, enduring the cold and, I’m betting, the burning heat from the tree. If we lose focus and fall, we die. But so long as we keep moving forward, we will live. Probably.”

Could it really be that simple? Tian considered it for a minute. It really might be that simple. The actual test wasn’t easy for a lower tier Earthly cultivator, but it was probably manageable when the test was first created.

“Sounds plausible.”

Tian felt a hand grab the back of his collar. “And where do you think you are going?”

“What? That sounds like a reasonable explanation and I don’t have a better one.” Tian tried to brush Liren’s hand off, but she wouldn’t be budged.

“Brother, do you want to lose your feet? Did you enjoy being in a wheelchair?”

Tian felt her “reasonable” voice was entirely unbelievable. She was being unreasonable about this.

“Look at the things that touched the ice. None of them froze instantly. So long as you keep moving quickly enough, you won’t freeze. Besides, who is going to be better at managing yin qi infiltration than me? Except possibly Sister Lin. Sister?”

“I could try it, but it’s not like I have any special knack for managing yin qi, beyond the fact that I cultivate a water aspected cultivation art. I am with Sister Hong on this, though. At the very least you should be seeing how long it takes for something to freeze when it touches the ice.” Lin handed him a wooden pole from her storage ring. Brother Wang and Sister Su nodded right along with her.

Four to one, and none of the four were foolish. It seems he had been too hasty. Hilarious thought, given everything. He must be healing more quickly than expected. No matter. He would test, time things, and make a plan. All so he could race across the ice. He could almost taste the fruit from the lake’s edge, and his mouth was watering.